


falling in love with you

by kagako



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Awkwardness, Confessions, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, First Kiss, M/M, SLIGHT spoilers for revelations because their support convo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-16
Updated: 2016-03-16
Packaged: 2018-05-27 00:33:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6262207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kagako/pseuds/kagako
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If asked, Takumi would say he hated the guy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	falling in love with you

**Author's Note:**

> this is my Very first attempt at anything FE and anything leo/takumi aaa so i hope you enjoy!
> 
> i literally don't know how the astral plane works but lets just assume it's simple ok, i literally made stuff up.
> 
> apologizes if it's a bit ooc i tried my Best.
> 
>  
> 
> dedicated to annie!

If asked, Takumi would say he hated the guy. The snarky curve of his lips, the arrogant _“heh, that was nothing”_ after he knocks out his enemies one after one with his magic. The way the guy has the nerve to taunt him as he does—belittling his archery and putting a dark veil over all his years of training, no less. Honestly, Takumi hated Leo, and he wasn’t afraid to look the bastard mage in the eye and wave his hatred around like a bright red flag.

Takumi’s hatred seemed to continue to grow the more he heard whispers of _“oh my, Prince Leo and Prince Takumi sure are alike, are they not?”_ from the maids and army men. He bites his lip, puts on a strained smile as he tells them all, “No, I don’t think me and the Nohrian Prince are alike at all, and—“

“You’re sure he’d say the same?” one of the army men interrupts, causing a hearty roll of laughter to wave off the group of men. In the corner of his eye, he spots a maid—Felicia?—pause in her duties to observe the commotion and hide a giggle.

The archer raises an eyebrow, the corner of his lips twitching in growing irritation. “Excuse you?” he says, low and dangerous.

“Oh, well, uh—“ the man says, flinching just ever so slightly under Takumi’s glare. “It’s just that—you know. Prince Leo… he basically said the same thing, you see, so—“

With that, the Hoshidan Prince turns on his heel and stalks off.

He turns the corner, making his way past the laughter and excitement erupting from the mess hall. There’s another fifty or so feet between the mess hall and the armory, where he completely ignores Hinata’s mostly innocent offer to spar. Takumi knows he really shouldn’t leave the astral plane, but Azura had informed it would be safe as long as they didn’t stray or stay outside the magic of the plane for long.

So Takumi steps out, closing his eyes and breathing deeply before irritated mutters from a few yards away greets his ears. Curiosity settles in before he has a chance to halt his footsteps.

“…they said that to me. I have nothing in common with that imbecile!” Prince Leo is saying, eyebrows furrowed and cheeks tinted with red.

 _You could say that again,_ Takumi agrees, watching Leo pace in front of what looks like to be a budding cherry blossom tree. He watches as Leo pauses, grumbles of discomfort sounding from his chest as he faces the tree. Leo lets out a breath, tilting his head back to look at the branches—an expression of comfort settles in as he stokes Brynhildr.

Takumi swears up and down that the serene smile was just a hallucination as irritation quickly clouds over Leo’s expression. Not one ounce of calm serenity is present as Leo mutters, “Just because Takumi and I are both royalty doesn’t mean we’re anything alike. _Ugh.”_

Once again, Takumi’s body takes over even as his brain is screaming for his feet to stop. _How dare he look so calm and gentle, then turn around and become a demon again?!_ “Muttering to yourself, Prince Leo?” he says, distaste in his voice once the name leaves his lips. “What’s the matter?” Takumi continues, taunting. He places his hands on his hips, a smirk on his face as he results to childish play. “Couldn’t find anyone else willing to talk to you?”

Leo’s shoulders tense, his eyes wide with shock—embarrassment, a shade of shame—as they meet Takumi’s own. “You!” he says, brows furrowed. “I didn’t know you were there. Why were you eavesdropping?”

Takumi pauses—the question catching him off guard. _Why… was I eavesdropping?_ he wonders, the gears in his brain working hard to form a sentence with the tune of his voice. He blinks once—twice, a fourth time before his smirk disappears, before the glint in his eyes vanishes. “Well…” Takumi begins, and honestly he’s starting to feel like a recruitment member under Leo’s demanding gaze. “It all sounded a bit too familiar. I’ve just been told the same story. It… seems as though it’ll be a long running joke for a while.”

Leo sighs, exasperated. “They’re calling us _twins!_ We can’t let them treat us this way—they’re all wrong!”

“Of course they are! You and I couldn’t be more different!”

“Exactly! I wouldn’t come near you with a ten-foot pole,” Leo tells him, and takes a graceful step back.

“Twenty-foot pole!” Takumi counters, shuffling backwards.

“Thirty, even!” Leo gives another counter, and before Takumi can give his ultimate counter of _“a million-foot pole!”_ Leo continues. “...Since you’re here, may I ask you something? What’s your favorite food?”

“Excuse you? What?”

Leo rolls his eyes, crosses his arms over his chest. The distaste in his gaze makes Takumi want to use him for target practice. “They say people with similar personalities like the same things.”

“Miso soup,” Takumi tells him, simple enough.

He watches Leo falter, brows knitting in confusion. “Mee…so… soup?” he tries, nodding quickly as the archer explains the dish briefly.  “My favorite food in beef stew. It’s kind of like a soup.” Then, there’s an _hmm_ as he considers their position.

They continue to question each other back and forth, and it seems as though the air around them is becoming less and less strained the more they learn about each other. After a round of interrogations, Leo’s lips settle into a content smile. He crosses his arms, directing his gaze towards Takumi’s own bewildered expression. “Who would’ve guessed we have so much in common?”

A bark of a laugh escapes the archer, and he nods in earnest. “I don’t know. But I’ll tell you—it…” he pauses here, balancing from foot to foot as he considers the weight of his words to come. “It’s hard to hate someone with such excellent taste.”

It’s Leo’s turn to laugh, his turn to nod in agreement. “No kidding!” he exclaims, eyes bright with excitement. Leo takes a step forward, expression more lax than when Takumi first arrived. “I was about to say the exact same thing.”

A carefree moment passes as they laugh to themselves, the hatred for each other on both their hearts lifting away, little by little, with such ease. Leo disrupts the silence first. “Maybe… we should do this again sometime.”

The open offer leaves him surprised—but Takumi quickly recovers, giving a hearty laugh similar to the ones the army men were giving him just twenty minutes beforehand. “Oh?” Takumi breathes, and he’s sure Leo doesn’t miss the taunting in his tone. However, the archer would be lying if he said he wasn’t sweating. “You want to be best friends now? Is that what you’re saying?”

Takumi watches Leo falter yet once more, and he isn’t sure if the mages own bark of laughter is shaky or not—can’t tell with the way his brain is seemingly filled with electricity. “Of course not,” Leo tells him, his eyes narrowing in a silent challenge—but Takumi doesn’t miss the smile. “That will never happen.”

“Never,” Takumi agrees, and his own smile is unyielding.

***

In the halls of the astral castle, Leo spots Takumi. With so many others around, it’s difficult to call out to him, to keep his pace steady as he makes his way to the familiar ruffle of hair. Takumi’s back is to him as he approaches, and Leo opens his mouth to make his presence known when a familiar _eep_ cuts him off. The archer spins around in surprise, his stance taking on a form Leo’s seen Hoshidan retainers take on while sparring.

Immediately, the fire in Takumi’s eyes dies and his stance relaxes. “Leo! Gods, don’t frighten me like that, Sakura.”

“O-Oh,” she squeaks, shifting from foot to foot as she glances anywhere but in Leo’s direction. “I a-apologize. We c-can talk later, Takumi,” Sakura murmurs, and then she’s shuffling off before either prince has a chance to speak.

“Is… this alright?” Leo says slowly, wide-eyed gaze still in Sakura’s direction.

“Huh? Yeah, it’s alright. She’s real shy, but she’s getting better,” Takumi reassures, a laugh following his smile. “This army is full of friendly people,” he says, then does a double take as he regards Leo, looking at him up and down. Takumi rubs his chin, clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Well, I guess most people in this army are friendly.”

 _“What?”_ Leo says sharply, his jaw falling open as Takumi snickers. With a scowl, Leo bumps their shoulders together, but with no ill meaning. Then, they’re laughing together in their own little corner of the astral castle, fumbling over each other’s hands and laughter. Takumi goes after Leo’s hair—Leo goes after Takumi’s ribs; it’s a process that doesn’t end until they’ve got tears in their eyes, gasps of breath asking “ _the usual spot?”_ with an equally breathless _“yeah, yeah, let’s go”_ in response.

The two of them make their way past the mess hall—Takumi snorts when Odin’s poetic attempt at naming one of the army-men’s weapons greets their ears, and Leo rolls his eyes, but with no ill intent. Quickly, they pass the armory to avoid Hinata, and soon the princes are settling themselves under the cherry blossom tree.

Leo clears his throat, speaks first. “Did you enjoy the book I lent you?”

“It was fascinating!” Takumi replies eagerly, and the archer can feel his cheeks tint with color at the way Leo’s eyes widened with surprise—the faint beginnings of a smile settled on the ever-smirking lips. “I started reading it last night. I stayed up way too late!”

“That always happens to me!” Leo reassures him, with equal excitement. “Oh, thank you so much for sharing your mee-so soup recipe with me. It turned out great.”

“Isn’t it good?” Takumi laughs, the excitement seeming to bubble up even more. He ignores the way the mage strains the word. “I’m glad you like it. Next time, show me how to make stew.”

“Certainly,” Leo agrees, his lips pursed to fight a grin. Silence settled over them comfortably, and Takumi can’t help but bump his shoulder against Leo’s once more. It prompts a snort of a laugh to sound from Leo, and he leans to reciprocate the gesture. The archer is the first to break the silence. “Hey… why did you come out here, on that day? I figured you’d brood in the dark darkness of your secret lair,” he says, imitating the mage’s retainer.

He doesn’t miss the way Leo rolls his eyes, but the smile does fight against the strain of his lips. “I wanted to get away, I suppose. Even Niles was spewing nonsense. I would have suffocated in the, ah, dark darkness of my secret lair.”

Takumi laughs at that. “Okay, fair enough. Oh!” he exclaims, digging through the inside of his clothes. He produces a moth-eaten book and the book Leo lent him. “I’m returning this—but keep it handy; I might want to read it again. And here’s this,” he continues, carefully setting the frayed book in Leo’s outstretched hand. “It’s about a great dragon—a lot of the text is faded and gray; I think the kingdom begins with a ‘y?’ Corrin gave it to me, but I haven’t a clue where she found such a thing,” Takumi says, brows knitted in slight confusion. “When I questioned her about it, she spluttered some nonsense about invisible warthogs and a royal shepherd?”

With another snort, Leo looks down at the book in his hands. “She’s never been good at lying.”

“Simply put,” Takumi agrees.

Another easy silence veils itself among the two, as they sit side-by-side under their cherry blossom tree. Takumi tilts his head back, watching the beginnings of the pink petals fall and for a split second, his eyes wander to Leo—and they stay there. It’s strange, he thinks. It’s strange how drawn he is to the Nohrian mage, how well they get along although their upbringings couldn’t be more different.

 _I’m grateful,_ he thinks, _that around this guy, I’m just ‘Takumi.’_

A content smile tugs at his lips, and for a fleeting moment, he can’t help but think how beautiful this moment is: the beauty of the dancing petals, the beauty of the contrast between Leo and their surroundings, and— _oh._

It occurs to Takumi, suddenly: Leo is beautiful.

His eyes are wide as they settle on the mage’s profile, and its then he notices the pounding of his heart, the heat radiating off his face. Takumi blinks a few times more than necessary, and abruptly the archer takes note of the shyness, the self consciousness that settles within bones, that makes it harder to draw in a breath.

 _Oh,_ he thinks again.

***

It’s not as if Leo doesn’t notice the staring—he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t feeling a bit self conscious. The atmosphere is comfortable, always a pleasure when he’s around the Hoshidan prince; and it’s something the mage isn’t used to—something that makes him feel at ease, like he doesn’t have to keep his guard up so tightly.

He feels peace when he’s around Takumi.

Leo supposes the cherry blossoms make it worse.

_Takumi is beautiful._

Leo stopped reading the faded text minutes ago—hours ago? seconds ago? He’s unsure how much time has passed between meeting inside the astral castle and settling under the tree. With such observant eyes on him, he’s having a hard time remembering to steady his breathing, let alone remember current events.

It becomes unbearable after three minutes and six seconds.

He turns his head, desperately trying to keep his expression neutral. The look in Takumi’s eyes, the glow of his face—it sparks something within the mage that he’s never read in books, and it encourages his own face to produce a glow of its own. “…What is it?” he finally murmurs.

“O-Oh!” Takumi breathes, tearing his eyes away from Leo’s own. The mage watches his companion blink rapidly, as if he’s just gotten out of a trance. The corners of Takumi’s lips twitch as he gives a try at a reassuring—albeit shaky—laugh. “I was just wondering,” the archer continues, and there’s something in his voice that makes Leo think he’s on autopilot. “How are you enjoying the book?”

Slight disappointment.

_Wait, what?_

“It’s unlike anything I’ve read so far,” Leo says instead, and he’s acutely aware of Takumi leaning against him, the soft breath that rushes against his cheek. A bit too shyly for his tastes, he turns slightly to look at the archer. “Did you want to read as well?” he asks, moving the book closer to Takumi.

“Oh, it’s—“ Takumi begins, and then there’s a hitch in his voice when he notices how close the other is.

They sit there motionless, noses mere centimeters from brushing. Leo notes that Takumi’s breath smells faintly of peaches—Takumi notes that Leo’s breath smells faintly of berries.

_He’s beautiful._

Neither prince notices he’s leaning in until their lips brush. It’s chaste—tentative, experimental. Leo’s breathing shudders midway through his nose, tickling Takumi’s cheek. As if on cue, each prince tilts his head to get better access. The breeze rustles their hair; the pages of the forgotten book between the two of them flap gently—lingering smells of fruits reach their noses; shouts and laughter of their fellow army men greet their ears.

Time seems to freeze in their moment under the cherry blossom tree.

It’s Leo that pulls away first—eyes half lidded and breath coming out in short pants. Takumi isn’t any better off than he is. A moment passes, and then another—realization comes like a hot iron to flesh. They pull away their bodiesfrom each other, the forgotten book producing a soft _thud_ as it falls to the ground.

“Sorry—“

“I don’t know what came over me—“

“It won’t happen again—“

They’re speaking over each other, eyes directed at anywhere but each other with reddened faces. Leo perks a bit at Takumi’s words, a strange sense of disappointment settling in his stomach. The mage takes his hand away from his mouth, clearing his throat as he takes a glance over to his companion. “It’s…” he begins, hesitant in his words. Leo reaches over to the borrowed book, carefully brushing away the dirt. He swallows the lump in his throat, chancing another glance. “I hadn’t… truly minded.”

Takumi’s face seems to redden even more at Leo’s carefully picked words. His eyes widen as they settle on the mage’s face—momentarily, he has to push past the thoughts of _he’s beautiful, he’s beautiful._ “What?” he says, dumbstruck, panicked.

His heart felt as though it were about to burst.

All in the same moment, his heart drops when Leo’s face pales, when he ducks his head slightly.

“I apologize,” Leo is saying, splaying his fingertips on the cover of the book. “If it suits you, you can erase this from your mind.” Takumi watches as Leo sets the book down between them, watches as Leo stands, keeping his posture straight although his legs must be asleep, tingling beneath his weight. “I’ll see you at the next meeting.”

“What?” Takumi says again, this time even more panicked than before. He reaches for Leo, curling his fingers around the other’s forearm before he can make an escape. “No—No, I—that’s definitely not what I—Leo, you’re beautiful—“ he blurts out, fumbling over his own words.

At least it makes Leo stop struggling, Takumi thinks.

Wide eyes look down at him, a mixture of surprise and relief resided in them. Takumi watches as Leo swallows, and slowly, the mage settles back on the ground in front of his companion. It’s the archer’s turn to swim in a sense of surprise and relief.

“You think I’m beautiful?” Leo asks, incredulous.

Takumi flinches, his lips twitching in a nervous smile. Clearing his throat, he nods as he meets Leo’s gaze. “Yes.”

Leo doesn’t say anything, takes a moment to ponder until Takumi hears a small snort sound from the prince across from him. “I was thinking the same thing.”

It’s Takumi’s turn to snort. “You were?”

“Yes,” the mage tells him, and rolls his eyes.

A moment passes as they consider their situation. Leo speaks first: “It seems we truly are more alike than we originally disagreed on.”

“Isn’t it supposed to be, opposites attract?”

“Oh?” Leo muses. “A universal mystery.”

Takumi considers it, shrugs his shoulders as he scoots his way closer to Leo. Automatically, they lean into each other. “So, then…” Takumi begins, a bit too shaky under Leo’s watchful eyes. Leo can practically feel their breaths mingling. “It’s okay then?”

“Don’t you already know the answer?” Leo questions back, his lips twitching in a smile as he tilts his head, helps Takumi close the distance.

“Yeah,” Takumi says. “I guess I do.”

The breeze blows, but time doesn’t stop.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading!


End file.
